Since the 1990s, photographer Ahn Sehong has spent a lot of his time and attention shooting images of comfort women &mdash Korean women forced into sexual slavery in Japan during World War II who now live in China. He was slated to display his work in Shinjuku at the Nikon Salon from two days ...

I knew Magibon had become somewhat of a celebrity in Japan after her strange stare down YouTube videos, but I didn't realize she had made the big screen. Here, an ad featured at the Akihabara branch of electronics store Yodobashi Camera.

Reader Kazu Y sends this YouTube video of a Kirin commercial featuring a park full of pregnant and young mothers who are drinking beer — that is, alcohol-free beer. He says: flabbergasted when I saw this maybe because I've lived in the US for so long.... What do you guys think? Is there somet...

Pregnant and young Japanese mothers drinking beer with John Lennon playing left me unsure of how to feel. I mean don't get me wrong, Lennon is (strangely) appropriate, but that just ads to the uncertainty of my feelings.

Reader Kazu Y sends this YouTube video of a Kirin commercial featuring a park full of pregnant and young mothers who are drinking beer — that is, alcohol-free beer. He says: flabbergasted when I saw this maybe because I've lived in the US for so long.... What do you guys think? Is there somet...

Who knew R&B and enka went well together? Apparently this guy, Freddie, who has become somewhat famous in Japan for this love song, called Kansai Kuukou (Kansai Airport). I have never heard of him before and am finding very little information about him online, but according to the Asahi he's ...

Sad news — the amazing musician Nujabes (real name Jun Seba) is confirmed dead today. He was in a car accident late at night on February 26 when getting off the Shuto Expressway. He was only 36 and ridiculously talented. I first discovered his music at a tiny wine bar in Golden-Gai, and have be...

If you're a last-minute holiday gift shopper like me and you're looking for something to get for your favorite/least favorite niece/cousin/uncle/sibling... why not get them a decent Japan book? Here are some recommendations: The history geek... John Dower's Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of ...

Related but unrelated: For the adolescent/ person who never grew out of adolescence: I would recommend Ryu Murakami's "69". It was a fun lighthearted read. (There was also a movie based on it by the same name that had an awesome opening credit sequence and the soundtrack had a song by Chemistry that I liked)

If you're a last-minute holiday gift shopper like me and you're looking for something to get for your favorite/least favorite niece/cousin/uncle/sibling... why not get them a decent Japan book? Here are some recommendations: The history geek... John Dower's Embracing Defeat: Japan in the Wake of ...

I'm quite surprised by the number of Korean last names. I wonder what the 10 most common Korean names are. I guess I'll research that and start Seoul Passion fruit (.com). Or Seoul Cantaloupe or Seoul Lychee Soju.

Last week, I posted about a JT story that researched the complexity of the historically super long Japanese naming system. I also asked if you could guess what the 10 most common Japanese last names were. Here are the answers: 1. Sato 2. Suzuki 3. Takahashi 4. Tanaka 5. Watanabe 6. Ito 7. Yamamot...

In case anyone else is interested, I found another video about this on youtube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vtja6XAgQQo
Also according to a source I read, one of his lines is: “We have to continue the fight, and support the weak. Rise again, warriors of the Land of Light. For peace and justice! For all the universe!”

Schwarzenegger stumbled into politics after his Hollywood career peaked, but former prime minister Junichiro Koizumi is just getting his debut in acting — he'll be voicing the part of a minor superhero in an upcoming Ultraman flick called MegaMonster Battle Ultra Galaxy.

Schwarzenegger stumbled into politics after his Hollywood career peaked, but former prime minister Junichiro Koizumi is just getting his debut in acting — he'll be voicing the part of a minor superhero in an upcoming Ultraman flick called MegaMonster Battle Ultra Galaxy.

Here are five quick facts about Yukio Hatoyama, the guy who will be replacing Taro Aso as prime minister: 1. He's a 4th-generation politician hailing from a family sometimes referred to as the Kennedys of Japan. 2. His maternal grandfather founded and inherited Bridgestone. 3. He has a PhD in m...

Shibuya246 has some great photos of the Gundam-themed wedding that just took place in Odaiba, under the life-sized Gundam statue. The groom dressed up as the protagonist Amuro, and the director of the anime series even showed up to give them a special plaque. Related stories: Man burns down hou...

My friend Alyssa sent me a link to a 2003 documentary called Children Full of Life, now viewable in its entirety on YouTube (also embedded in this post). The film features a very unique 4th grade class in Kanazawa, where the teacher encourages students to keep journals, read them out loud in ...

I like the new look. The engineer in me likes the simplicity of it. And I like how the "Brand New" logo looks a bit more understated. It looks really great. Usually there is that bit of awkwardness when a site you frequent changes, but in this case it feels better. Hopefully that made sense. Good job.

I was at the lovely Get Lost travel bookstore on Market Street in San Francisco just now looking at travel books, and was pleasantly surprised by Urawaza being displayed right by the cash register. By the way, if you've been reading this blog for awhile and you still don't own the book, you sho...

Japan has been kicking butt in the Miss Universe contest for the past couple of years—Riyo Mori won in 2008, Kurara Chibana was the first runner up in 2007. The 2009 candidate has some big shoes to fill. Meet her—she's Emiri Miyasaka, a 24-year old model from Shibuya. She'll be traveling to the...